


Reunification

by Andromakhe



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 1987)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-22
Updated: 2016-07-05
Packaged: 2018-07-16 14:21:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7271749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Andromakhe/pseuds/Andromakhe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set after "Splinter Vanishes." All the Turtles took Splinter's disappearance hard, but Raphael and Michelangelo had it especially rough. Though Splinter and the Turtles know how to work together, some fences need to be mended. Or broken down, as the case may be.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Dissonance

**Author's Note:**

> "Splinter Vanishes" is one of my favorite episodes of the entire '80s series, but I thought going through what the Turtles had would have been at least a little traumatic. The '80s Turtles are quite well-adjusted, so this isn't overly depressing, but I've been wanting to cobble together an aftermath discussion for a while. This turned out much longer than I expected, and there is a lot of speculation on my part about how the Turtles got along, but I needed some closure. I hope '80s fans enjoy.

It was the evening after Splinter and the Turtles were reunited as a team and the joy and thrill of victory and coming home had since worn off. Training had been attempted that morning, but was abandoned soon after it began when Splinter discerned that even Leonardo was too unfocused to work. He'd certainly tried, but when one sword slipped from his grasp and clanged to the ground because of a slight miscalculation in maneuver, everyone stopped their exercises and stared at him with raised eyebrows. Leo had ducked his head, picked up his swords, and sheathed them with a quiet sigh of resignation. Michelangelo lay a cool hand on Leo's forearm, his expression inviting him to talk. But Leo shook his head slowly and Mike nodded, glancing around the room at each member of their family and knowing intuitively that harmony was lacking. 

Splinter had ended the session neutrally, telling his Turtles he was going for a walk and that they were free to amuse themselves as they wished until lunch time. This unexpected windfall did not produce the excitement or pleasure Splinter would have expected from all but Leonardo. Instead, his students bowed dutifully to him and dispersed to their rooms without a sound. Splinter found he missed his sons' amiable chatter, their engagement when he taught them something new, Leonardo and Donatello's astute questions, Raphael and Michelangelo's ability to find the fun in work. 

Splinter had returned an hour later to find Leonardo reading, Donatello in his lab, and Raphael and Michelangelo on the couch in front of the TV with the sound muted. It was as though there was some tacit agreement not to make noise. Splinter was a little surprised when Raphael nodded to him in curt greeting and Michelangelo offered a dim smile that didn't quite reflect in his eyes. Raphael turned off the TV and got to his feet, Michelangelo mirroring him. They got their skateboards and stopped in front of Splinter, Raphael waving toward the lair exit with raised eyebrows. Splinter nodded, admonishing them softly to be home for lunch, the Turtles readily agreeing. 

Lunch came and went and a meditation session was attempted, but this, too, failed. Though everyone linked hands, only Splinter and Leonardo succeeded in emptying their minds. Splinter sensed a separation - a kind of force field - between himself and his sons. Indeed, rather than a seamless integration, where each spirit was distinctive yet blended with every other, no one touched now. When his spirit reached to touch his students, Leonardo and Donatello actually recoiled a little. It was slight and subtle, but Splinter was practiced and powerful enough to sense it and was vaguely uneasy. Still, he did succeed in making contact with them. When he approached Michelangelo, he was avoided, and this shrinking away was definitely fearful. Raphael would not allow Splinter near at all, actually strengthening the defensive barrier around himself. Splinter came out of meditation and released Leonardo and Donatello's hands, signaling his students to let go as well. He wore a worried frown. "I sense a lack of integration among us. While I would expect a readjustment period, active avoidance of each other and myself is cause for concern. What troubles you, my students?"

Silence. All the Turtles stared at the ground. When Leonardo looked up and made eye contact with Splinter, there was only confusion. The other Turtles lifted their eyes but looked straight ahead, not seeing anything in particular but not willing to engage in the conversation, either.

Leonardo finally spoke. "There's something wrong, but I can't put my finger on it. I know we're not the team we should be, and I know that being apart for a couple months isn't really enough to explain that. It's not like we fellas haven't kept in touch. We just didn't live together day in and day out. But finding the problem may be out of my league - not my forte."

Splinter pursed his lips thoughtfully. "Let us adjourn this session. This time, however, I would like each of you to ponder what is containing your spiritual energy and preventing it from merging properly with me and each other. Connections are always two-way, and though my spirit sought to connect with yours, I was reluctantly allowed to make contact or shunned and rebuffed. There is negativity lurking within each of you, trapping you in a prison of your own making. Find the source of your pain and work to free yourselves from it. Talk to each other, talk to yourself, journal, or meditate. These may help make self-examination easier. There is no hurry and I am available should you need me. I believe in all of you." With that, Splinter bowed to the Turtles and headed to the kitchen for tea.


	2. Reparations

And so it was that evening found the family gathered at their table for dinner, food in front of them but little appetite for it. Eating was steady, but slow. Finally, Raphael glanced at Leo a tad regretfully before turning to Splinter and starting the conversation. "Sensei, I'm just going to come out and say it. You put us through hell. So it's little wonder I can't work with you. I have nothing against the guys. While I didn't agree with Leonardo's decision to remain loyal to you, I got that he had to be true to himself, and I guess following him is habit by now, so I went along. Like he already mentioned, it wasn't like we didn't talk, so I managed. We all did." Raphael glanced sidelong at Mike, but shrugged. "Michelangelo had it a bit rougher, but he ended up making his own way eventually. Just took a little longer than the rest of us.

"Anyway, the point is, we survived and that's it. We made enough of a living to be able to afford food and basic comfort, but as the days wore on, I know I was feeling like the whole business of living was pointless. Not that I wanted to end my own suffering, but it looked pretty bleak to think work was all I had to look forward to, with occasional chats and visits with the guys to break up the misery.

"I appreciate that we're all together again, but I don't appreciate having to fend for myself without any warning at all. And I **especially** don't appreciate your dishonesty." Raphael paused, staring Splinter down in challenge.

Splinter held Raphael's gaze, but didn't stare back. He simply held his ground before ultimately breaking eye contact and nodding. "So you are saying you resent me for turning your life upside down and deliberately withholding information?"

"Yeah." Raphael nodded. "You abandoned us and allowed us to think we no longer had your protection and loyalty. If you'd just told us from the beginning what we had to do, that you were only planning to separate us temporarily, it would have saved us a lot of grief."

Leonardo spoke up. "The Rat King and Leatherhead are legitimate threats. Besides, the Rat King has spies everywhere. No one would know better than Sensei how sharp a rat's hearing is. Telling us ahead of time would have been tactically unsound. I suppose our genuine pain on splitting up helped, too, if we were trying to convince the Rat King and Leatherhead that we were really vacating the premises.

"On the other hand, Raphael, I agree that parting ways was-" Leo stopped, his face showing remembered heartache. "It's nothing I'd want to experience again unless there really isn't a choice."

The other Turtles nodded solemn agreement.

"Donatello? Michelangelo? Do you have anything to add?" Splinter asked.

Donatello spoke up. "Repairing things isn't very stimulating work, but since I'm already used to it and was making a little money, I can't really complain. Also, I'm accustomed to solitude, so for the most part, my life wasn't as terrible as Raphael makes his sound. Boring and sometimes lonely, especially at night, but I don't think I blamed you at the time. That was my situation and I was mostly focused on living day to day. But on reflection and in light of Raphael's resentment, I may have to revise my opinion and say that it seems only logical to concur with him."

Splinter frowned after interpreting Donatello's indirect jab. "It sounds as though life was not much different for you with or without us. Indeed, in some ways, it sounds better, if you were making money for fixing things. We do not pay you. Yet you say you prefer to make less money and have decided that your isolation is my doing. So your brothers are more important to you than money?"

"Absolutely. Maybe you guys don't pay me for repairs, but here, I feel like I have a purpose. Fixing strangers' things - anyone can do that. But I don't particularly care about those strangers. It's my friends I want to help, my family I get fulfillment out of helping."

"I'm with you, Donatello. I wasn't satisfied entertaining people for a living. I mean, what difference does that make? Odd as this sounds, when we were a team again and facing off against Leatherhead and the Rat King, I felt like I was doing something important. I felt...needed, I guess. I know Leonardo's gonna say he gets fulfillment out of defending the weak and doing the upstanding thing, and that's inspiring, but it's not me." Raphael winked at Leonardo, who offered an embarrassed little smile and then shrugged good-naturedly.

"What can I say, Raphael? You know me too well. I think helping people to be healthier is a worthy goal, but work cut into my training time, and I regret that Leatherhead was able to exploit that. I should have maintained my training better, and I have no excuse except that it reminded me too much of us and I just didn't have the heart for it then. The first couple weeks were tough for all of us. Adjustment period."

Splinter's eyes narrowed in disapproval but he relented and relaxed his expression. His Turtles probably did have it hard in the beginning, being abruptly bereft of his guidance, their home, and even each other. In light of this, he could understand Raphael's sense of desertion, Donatello's annoyance at being reduced to manual labor, and Leonardo's uncharacteristic lack of motivation. Ninja training took a lot of time, and with only so many hours in a day and extenuating circumstances, of course training would have had to be reduced or stopped. Splinter reached out and touched Michelangelo's forearm gently, raising his eyebrows at him.

Michelangelo met Splinter's gaze awkwardly, then looked at Leonardo for help.

"What do you need, Michelangelo?" Leo asked kindly.

"I need help thinking," Mike replied.

"No surprise there," Raph quipped.

"Raphael," Leo warned. "You're not helping."

"What? It's the truth."

"Raphael." Leonardo's tone now carried discernible menace.

"Right. Okay. I guess that was bad timing," Raph muttered, though the words were still intelligible. And then, at a normal volume, "Sorry, Michelangelo."

Michelangelo shrugged. "No sweat, bro." He addressed Leo but spoke to everyone. "So like, I dunno what I think, what **to** think. Leonardo, you say you dig Sensei's strategy. I'm just gonna trust your judgment on that. If you say it works, it probably does. But I still feel..." Michelangelo looked into Raph's eyes briefly before turning back to Leo. "I feel...betrayed. Used. Like all the pain we went through was just for a strategy." Raphael nodded emphatically at this declaration. "But I don't wanna feel like this, Leonardo. I love Sensei, and I don't wanna think he's that evil, that heartless. If hurting us was the only way to get Leatherhead and the Rat King to come out of hiding and make a move, okay. But it doesn't **feel** okay." Michelangelo finally looked Splinter full in the face. "Sensei, this is the first time I know of that you chose to lie to us. I never thought you would. I love you, but how can I be sure of you? You did come clean, and that helps. But you taught us to tell the truth and you went against that. Even for a good reason, it feels wrong to be treated like this."

Splinter's normally calm demeanor wavered as the implications of Michelangelo's words sank in. Michelangelo didn't trust him. Perhaps all of his sons no longer trusted him. Was it even possible to fix such a situation? He'd been found guilty and perhaps there was no point trying to defend himself. He looked into each Turtle's eyes. Michelangelo was pleading, begging Splinter or someone smarter than himself to help him to accept his trust being broken. Raphael was sullen, ruminating. Donatello was thoughtful and Splinter detected no malice within him. Leonardo, though clearly saddened by the turn the conversation had taken, wasn't shaken. He held firm to his faith and conviction, and Splinter knew that there was hope. His sons were not lost to him; they needed only to come to terms with the ordeal they'd been through - that he put them through. 

Donatello broke the silence. "Sensei saved my life. That counts for a lot. Really, he saved all our lives."

Leonardo nodded. "Sensei wasn't far. He came through when we really needed him and he kept an eye on us. And going it alone, though sometimes unpleasant, has made us stronger. We know that we can do it now. We can rely on ourselves if we have to. That means that we're together now because we want to be - not because we need to be. I'm not saying I don't need all of you in my life. I do. Very much. But knowing I can make it on my own if necessary gives me a freedom I wouldn't otherwise have gained without being forced to do it. And think about Sensei, guys. He already did this. What we did. And he believed in us enough that separating us was actually a viable strategy. If he didn't think we were capable and resourceful enough to find a way to survive, he'd have had to find another way to force our enemies' hand. 

"Michelangelo, I understand where you're coming from. In fact, I understand where Raphael's coming from, too. I'm sure having to deal with humans got on his last nerve." Raph snorted derisively. "But it looks to me like Sensei didn't just see us as a means to an end. We've all been hurt in this trial, but we've also gained a confidence in ourselves that can only be good for us in the long run. 

"Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo - following me has always been your choice. Following Sensei has been something we fellas had little choice about. Now that's different. Whether or not to accept Sensei as your leader is a decision I have no place making for you. But I'll tell you right now that I still choose to be part of his team. I still choose to lead our team. If you guys want to leave, it's risky, but you'll still be my friends. I'll be sorry to see you go, but I certainly can't stop you if you have dreams you want to pursue."

Michelangelo shook his head. "I'm staying here. Being alone is bogus. I still think of Sensei as a leader, but how do I follow someone who could trick me? That's my problem."

Raphael spoke up next. "So I'd have a lot of free time and no one to share it with. I could do what I want, try my hand at comedy or music, and every time you and Michelangelo tangle with the Shredder or some other goon, I'd kick myself for not being with you to watch your shells. It's a tough decision, but I can live with myself easier if I stay here. Problem is I can't follow Sensei. Maybe he loves us, and I figure I still care about him, but I can't follow someone I don't respect."

"Raphael!" Leonardo scolded, shocked.

But Splinter spoke quietly. "It is all right, Leonardo. If Raphael does not respect me, it is reasonable. After all, I disrespected him first by keeping my plans secret."

Raphael nodded slowly.

"But he **had** to," Leonardo tried to argue.

"He could have written us a note," Raphael grumbled.

Donatello spoke up. "Well, since everyone's staying, I may as well follow suit. I'm fine with the status quo, too. Really can't think of anyone better for the leadership positions, and obscuring the truth is sometimes just necessary. It's not a personal thing. We do it, too, every time we wear disguises or sneak into a building. And we don't even confess. Is it right just because we tend to do it for our own safety or to thwart a criminal? I don't think so. But there's no way around it.

"So we suffered collateral damage. But I think Leonardo's right and the benefits outweighed the negatives in this case. So I can forgive the inconvenience and interruption to our routine."

Splinter stroked his chin for a moment and spoke to his students. "I must meditate on this conversation. If I have lost trust and respect, I can no longer teach all of you. The team can no longer exist. I need to think about the rift I have created. Losing Raphael and Michelangelo does not seem worth the victory against the Rat King and Leatherhead."

"I don't think you've lost us, Sensei," Michelangelo encouraged. "I think as long as you don't trick us again, I can just write this off as something that had to be done."

"Ah, but Michelangelo, asking me not to deceive again is an impossible promise to keep. I think it would be impossible for anyone. All I can say is that I want good things for you, for all of you. And if you all can trust in that, then perhaps you can also find it in your hearts to forgive me for causing you pain. I acted with the knowledge that my disappearance and the loss of your home and team would be devastating. Because there is no excuse for treating loved ones this way, I can only apologize to each of you. I do not know how else to make restitution, if indeed restitution can be made. I believe I have said all I can. It is up to Michelangelo and Raphael to determine whether they are willing to give me the benefit of the doubt."

Raphael stood up and stretched. The rest of the family did the same. He spoke to Splinter. "I don't know if 'sorry' quite covers it. But then again, it does open a door. I get that you can't promise to be totally up front with us. I don't even expect it. What I would like is some kind of assurance that in the future, if something you need is going to cost us a lot, that we be given the courtesy of a warning. You think that's doable?"

Splinter nodded. "Yes, my son. In the future, if strategy requires great sacrifice, I will make more of an effort to communicate this. Is this acceptable?"

Raphael held out a hand. Splinter shook it.

"Michelangelo? Is there any way I can make it up to you?" Splinter asked.

Michelangelo couldn't answer. He didn't know.

Leonardo stepped in. "You know, Sensei, maybe Michelangelo just has to talk to us. We can help him sort himself out."

"We?" Raphael grumbled. "I'm not taking this assignment, fearless leader. That's your department. **You** sort him out."

"I'm afraid I must concur with Raphael," Donatello chimed in. "This is your forte. I'm better with facts and figures."

"Very well," Leonardo accepted.

"I will go do some thinking of my own. Don't hesitate to disturb me when you two have arrived at some outcome."

"Very good, Master," Leonardo bowed formally.

The rest of the Turtles bowed to Splinter and he left the room, tail swishing in agitation.


	3. Attunement

Raphael sat in front of the TV, this time with the sound on. Donatello disappeared to check on the turtle van. Michelangelo started into Leo's room, assuming they'd talk in there, but Leonardo vetoed that and indicated Michelangelo's doorway. Mike smiled and motioned to his bed, and the Turtles sat side by side.

"Okay, Mike. Talk to me," Leo ordered.

"I dunno what to say, bro."

"Why can't you trust Sensei?" Leo sounded more accusatory than he'd meant to.

Michelangelo shrank back visibly, but didn't hide in his shell. "He hurt me," he intoned in a small voice.

Leo frowned. "I'm not sure I can accept that answer."

"He tricked us. Let us think we would never be together again, that we'd never see our home again, that we were on our own from then on. How do I know something like this won't happen again?"

"Hmmm." Leo pondered Michelangelo's words, creating a silence that lasted long enough for Michelangelo to begin fidgeting. He focused again on Michelangelo's face. "Two things. First, it's practically guaranteed Sensei will hurt you again. It just comes along with living together. We're all different and have different opinions, and to get hurt is unavoidable. What matters is how often it happens, and to what degree.

"Secondly, I've done my share of tricking you. Remember the wax museum and how you thought the Master Splinter statue was real?" There was a pause, and then Mike gasped and nodded vigorously, his smile reaching his eyes. Leo grinned. "What about your birthday, when we all pretended we didn't know?" Mike's face fell, but then his eyes widened in realization as he remembered that he'd had a great birthday in the end. "Looks to me like you don't hold my tricks against me, and I did them just to entertain myself. What makes me different from Sensei? I think my reasoning was much less defendable than his."

"Dude, he's way older than us. And what he did changed our whole lives, changed us. Laughing at me...I can take it. I know you love me even if you play with me sometimes, just like I know Raphael loves me even though he makes cracks about my slow brain. I know Sensei cares about me, but does he love me? If he does, how could he hurt me on purpose?"

"You...you think Sensei doesn't love you?" Leo whispered, eyes wide in horror.

"No. I mean-" Michelangelo backpedaled. "I'm sorry, compadre. I don't want to feel like this. I just don't know how to make myself stop."

Leonardo's terror had turned to sadness as he wracked his brain for some way to make Michelangelo understand that Master Splinter hadn't been cruel and unfeeling. In fact, the way Leo saw it, he'd been just the opposite. Leo certainly would have preferred having all the information, just like Raphael, but Splinter's promise to handle similar situations differently in the future was good enough for him. Leo decided that persuading Michelangelo was impossible and he would just speak from his own heart and let things go from there. "Michelangelo, it grieves me to know you no longer feel loved by Sensei. I think you should be talking to him instead of me. But if I were in your place, I'd feel uncomfortable confronting him, so I'll try to explain the way I see things. You have to talk to him eventually, so you can verify my opinions then." Michelangelo nodded dutifully, understanding a command when he heard one.

Leo took Mike's hand and looked him in the face. "You said you feel betrayed and used. I don't think Sensei meant for you to feel that. Yes, he knew we'd be heartbroken by his actions. I'm not fully absolving him of responsibility. But I'm certain he didn't mean to betray you or anger Raphael. He probably figured we'd be sad, we'd mope around for a few weeks, we'd get our act together and start dealing with our new situation. And that's what happened. The first week was the toughest on all of us. We luckily had some money to hold us over for the first couple weeks. After that, our moods improved enough that we started to try to make the best of things.

"As far as separating us, I think that was actually for our protection. This way, if we were captured or hurt, all the eggs wouldn't be in one basket, so to speak. We weren't restricted from visiting or communicating with each other, so that leads me to believe Sensei really thought making it harder to capture all of us was the best course. And he turned out to be right, since I ended up being able to break you guys out.

"Finally, the Rat King had been quiet for a while before Sensei left us. Unusually quiet. And quiet often means planning. The Rat King is not a good person, so whatever he was up to was likely nefarious."

"Nefarious?" Mike asked, eyebrow raised quizzically.

"Evil," Leo translated.

"Oh. I agree. Quiet means up to no good for someone like him."

Leo smiled and nodded. "Whatever the Rat King was planning was probably bad news either for the city, Splinter, or us, so Sensei might have decided that we couldn't allow whatever he was planning to happen. Since he wasn't showing himself voluntarily, Sensei resorted to extreme measures. What I'm saying is I believe the strategy Master Splinter used, involving us leaving our home and living our own lives, was something of a last resort. The options were to either risk being sitting targets when the Rat King finally put whatever he was planning into action or to maybe have a chance of survival alone. As it turned out, and as you know, the Rat King was in fact trying to take over the city and kill us, so I think Sensei ultimately made the right choice."

Leo squeezed Michelangelo's hand. "Mike," he said earnestly, "Sensei's feelings about us haven't changed. I'm sure there wasn't a day that went by that he didn't worry for us. I'm a leader. I know. You send your teammates, your brothers, on reconnaissance and you wait for word, hoping all the while they return safely. But you send them because you figure that yeah, there's risk, but there's also a fairly good chance your team can handle them. When Sensei's gone on meditation retreats, we worry about him, too. Sure, we think he's a master ninja and he can probably handle himself, but we still don't relax completely until he's home again. And remember that Sensei was exiled. He was forced to flee Japan, his homeland, and still, the Shredder followed him here. Sensei was forced to live as a rat, to find what shelter and food he could, to learn to be a different creature. He wasn't asking us to do anything he hadn't already done.

"Michelangelo, you have to decide for yourself whether you can forgive Master for wronging you. I don't think he betrayed or used you, but you have the right to feel like that in the same way that you have the right to like junk food. I'm just trying to give you my perspective in hopes that it might change yours and make it easier to come to terms with the fact that our wise Sensei broke our hearts. And consider that Sensei's only half human like the rest of us, so maybe he deserves another chance. Maybe he's entitled to a mistake or three."

"Leonardo, what you said about Sensei does make me see things differently, and I totally forgot that he didn't live in the sewers originally and wasn't even a rat until later in his life. At least, we were born here and have always lived here. Sure changes perspective when you think how much harder someone else had it. And he had to feed us and take care of us, even more than now. Maybe he had to risk digging through garbage, and if someone saw him..."

Leo nodded grimly.

"I feel like such a scuz bucket." Mike stared down at his bed glumly.

"No, Michelangelo," Leo assured softly. "Your point of view made sense to me and probably made sense to Sensei. If it comes to our hearts or a strategy, I know what you'd choose. That's why you're not a leader. But it's also why we leaders need you. Because someone has to balance us out and ensure that we don't lose our compassion and become like the Shredder. Raphael and Donatello are valuable, too, because they provide a practical perspective. Maybe you and I exert influence on them, keeping their faith and hope alive. Whatever the case, we have a good thing going. I'll leave it at that."

Michelangelo stood in his doorway, facing Leo. "Thanks for your help, bro. What Sensei did - he had to pick between hurting us or maybe killing us. That's not really a choice. And the fact he didn't mean to betray me - that means it was an accident, a mistake. And love means forgiving mistakes, right?"

"Now you're talking." Leo smiled.

"I'll go talk to Sensei. Then I think we should finish dinner. I'm hungry again."

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

Splinter and Michelangelo gathered the rest of the family back at their dining table, cold food still waiting for them. When everyone was seated, Splinter spoke. "Leonardo, I think I owe you my gratitude. I am honored and humbled by your faith in me. You have returned Michelangelo to me, and such a debt cannot be repaid. All I can do is express my deepest appreciation."

Leo bent so that his forehead nearly touched the table before straightening up again with a formal inclination of his head. 

"Raphael and I knew you could do it," Donatello praised.

"Yeah. Good going, Fearless." Raphael slapped Leo's shell in a show of solidarity.

Leo smiled brilliantly at Don and Raph, who nodded in acknowledgement. "Well, in the end, it was a team effort. I spoke from my heart and it resonated with Michelangelo, but it was Michelangelo who ultimately chose to stay."

Michelangelo grinned broadly at Leo and clasped his hand firmly.

"I know we are all hungry and wish to finish dinner, but I have one question that cannot wait." Splinter met each student's gaze for a long moment before resuming. "Do you again accept me as your teacher and your guardian? I know I broke your trust and broke your hearts, so I would understand if you refuse, but it would bring me indescribable joy if you chose to stay with me."

The Turtles looked around at each other and then Leo focused on Splinter. "I do," he intoned gravely.

"Me, too," Donatello rejoined.

"I respect you," Raphael said, gazing into Splinter's eyes without anger.

"You're still the best Sensei in the world." Michelangelo beamed.

Splinter bowed to the Turtles and resumed his seat. The Turtles bowed back and Leo took Splinter's miso soup, intending to reheat it. But Splinter held up a hand. "Thank you, but I will do it. Let me warm up your pizza." So saying, he got a platter from the kitchen, transferred everyone's plates onto it, and served his sons amidst talk of their upcoming patrol.


End file.
